Seal Pool Underwater - Lauwersoog, Netherlands

This camera sits below the waterline, level with the sand on the pool floor, so the seals pass the lens at eye height rather than from above. It covers the same Phase 3 enclosure at the Werelderfgoedcentrum Waddenzee in Lauwersoog harbour, the last stage of rehabilitation before release into the Wadden Sea, but from inside the water rather than looking down on it.

Underwater is where seals stop looking clumsy. Expect slow spiralling turns, animals hanging motionless mid-water between breaths, and sudden bursts across the tank. The green cast comes from the pool lighting and the filtration, not the camera. The Netherlands runs one hour ahead of UTC, two in summer, and the pool is busiest around feeding and care routines during the Dutch working day.

The Seal Rehabilitation and Research Centre has taken in injured, orphaned and sick seals since 1971 and is the largest facility of its kind in Europe. It moved into this purpose-built site on the harbour in April 2025. Two species come through it, the common seal and the grey seal, and both are released back into the UNESCO-listed Wadden Sea a few hundred metres from the building.

Did You Know? Those whiskers are doing more work than they look. Harbour seals can follow the invisible wake a fish leaves in the water for up to thirty seconds after it has passed, tracking it by vibration alone through their vibrissae. In water this murky, that matters more than eyesight.

Explore more live cameras by country, browse the full interests directory, or open the interactive world map to find underwater cameras elsewhere. You can also see every feed on our all cameras page.